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Fantasy Life

Play trailer 2:15 Poster for Fantasy Life R In Theaters Mar 27 1h 31m Romance Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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77% Tomatometer 22 Reviews Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
An anxious law school dropout (Matthew Shear) stumbles into a job babysitting his psychiatrist's three granddaughters and falls for the girls' mother (Amanda Peet), an actress in a rocky marriage. A smart, New York-set romantic comedy co-starring Alessandro Nivola, Judd Hirsch, Bob Balaban, Andrea Martin, Zosia Mamet, and Holland Taylor. Winner of the SXSW Narrative Feature Audience Award.
Coming Soon In Theaters Mar 27 Notify Me

Critics Reviews

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Chris Barsanti Slant Magazine 4d
2.5/4
Amanda Peet finds layers of shading in what could have been a dull and simplistic role. Go to Full Review
Brian Tallerico RogerEbert.com 03/14/2025
A comedy that doesn’t just give Amanda Peet a comeback role but might feature her best screen work to date. Go to Full Review
Angie Han The Hollywood Reporter 03/12/2025
With Amanda Peet in a remarkable star turn, it marks a promising debut for writer-director Matthew Shear. Go to Full Review
Jeanne Kaplan Kaplan vs. Kaplan 2h
Billed as a romantic comedy, Shear’s screenplay is neither romantic nor funny. Neither David, my illustrious partner, nor I laughed once. Go to Full Review
David Kaplan Kaplan vs. Kaplan 2h
Virtually all the characters are unlikeable --- including the three girls, who are incredibly annoying. Peet is the exception here. Go to Full Review
Warren Cantrell The Playlist 7h
B
While the important particulars of the story are addressed, along with the thematic elements at play vis-à-vis adversity, intimacy, and maturity, it feels a little like a story in search of a conclusion. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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eli 1d The kissing scenes and the story See more Michael Y. @michaelyonis 6d Absolutely horrible movie. It was so dry and boring, that I almost fell asleep in the roughly 30 minutes I watched of the movie before walking out of the theater. See more Mike K @mike65401 Mar 19 The only redeeming quality was Amanda Peet. I'll watch any movie if she is in it. I'm not really sure how the actors got talked into being in this movie. And it didn't have an ending.... it just stopped and the credits started rolling. See more Mariah H @RT32502740 Mar 17 I saw this less than 24 hours ago and it actually beat out the Nirvanna movie for worst movie I've seen in a while. The actors weren't the issues, it was the pointless drawn out storyline, like you were watching a boring life unfold with a lot of forced drama. The angles they filmed from were also awkward. The end felt rushed and had no definitive marker; felt like just another scene. Only knew it ended because of the credits. Hardly any laughter in the theater, so not sure how this was a comedy. Perfect movie for putting the audience to sleep, as we discovered. Definitely not worth a full price movie ticket. I would have turned the movie off if it was on a streaming service. I know indie films can be a little different, but this definitely was not worth the power, money, or film/storage used to create it. See more Teresa L. @tlewiswatts Mar 17 I didn’t ever feel that the lead character—who also wrote & directed this boring story—had any appeal. I kept waiting for this film to pick up & do something, & it just dripped along until it finally ended! A total waste of an hour & a half I’ll never get back—except for seeing Amanda Peet, who I honestly didn’t recognize until well into the film…Holland Taylor & Judd Hirsch were great to see, as was Andrea Martin. If this is a “comedy”, then I never want to see a modern comedy again. See more Clark T. @RT11871854 Mar 17 Fantasy Life is a light hearted film with such realistic dialogue that didn’t feel forced in anyway. A really good dramedy with the perfect amount of romance sprinkled in. Fantasy Life is a film that people should see because I know they will find a way to relate to it in some way, shape, or form. Its message of mental health is so important aswell. I don’t think I’ve enjoyed a film in this genre this much since i watched past lives when it came out. See more Read all reviews
Fantasy Life

My Rating

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Movie Info

Synopsis An anxious law school dropout (Matthew Shear) stumbles into a job babysitting his psychiatrist's three granddaughters and falls for the girls' mother (Amanda Peet), an actress in a rocky marriage. A smart, New York-set romantic comedy co-starring Alessandro Nivola, Judd Hirsch, Bob Balaban, Andrea Martin, Zosia Mamet, and Holland Taylor. Winner of the SXSW Narrative Feature Audience Award.
Director
Matthew Shear
Producer
Charlie Alderman, Christopher Dodds, Amanda Peet, Phil Keefe, Emily McCann Lesser, David Bernon, Sam Slater
Screenwriter
Matthew Shear
Distributor
Greenwich Entertainment
Production Co
Prospect Avenue, Burn Later Productions, Made By Limbo, AC3 Media, Charlie's Production Company
Rating
R (Brief Drug Use|Some Sexual References|Language)
Genre
Romance, Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 27, 2026, Limited
Runtime
1h 31m
Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.66:1)
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